Personal Injury FAQ

Personal Injury FAQ

Answers to Common Questions from an Injury Lawyer

If you have recently been injured in an accident, you may have dozens of
questions running through your mind, and rightfully so. Injury and accident
victims are harmfully affected by the accident that they have been involved
in, especially when they were not to blame for the incident. Fortunately,
a Santa Clarita personal injury lawyer from The Law Offices of Gerald
L. Marcus has answers to some of the most commonly asked questions!

What should I do after I have been injured in an accident? After suffering injuries in any type of accident, it is immediately important
to obtain the medical help that you need to remain healthy or to be nursed
back to health. Your health and survival should be your main priority.
Immediately after receiving medical attention, you, or a family member,
are strongly advised to consult with a Santa Clarita personal injury lawyer
to find out if you are eligible to file a personal injury claim.

How do I know if I am eligible for a personal injury claim? By working with your personal injury attorney, you can determine fault and
negligence in the accident. If another party was entirely at fault for the accident,
leaving you absolutely no fault for the damages, you are most likely eligible
to file a claim. However, insurance companies can be sneaky, and they
may try to convince you otherwise or that you are not eligible for a claim.
Only speak to an insurer if you have your lawyer present.

What if I'm contacted by the insurance company?

It is in your best interest to refrain from giving the insurance company
a recorded statement until you have consulted with a lawyer. If you believe
that your injuries were caused by negligence on the part of the other
person, then you may be entitled to more compensation than the insurance
company will tell you upfront. The goal of most insurance companies is
to settle for as little as possible as quickly as possible. This allows
them to increase their client's premiums while securing maximum revenue
by paying out a lesser settlement. The incentive they draw most victims
in with is a fast settlement. However, when your life has been transformed
by injuries that you did nothing to cause, you deserve a fair settlement
proportionate to your situation – not the insurance company's
preferences.

The other person's insurance company offered me a settlement check,
should I accept it?

After an injury accident, you should not accept any settlement without
first speaking with a lawyer. Insurance companies prefer quick settlements
and will try to get you to agree to an amount that is below what you rightly
deserve. Consulting with a personal injury attorney about the offered
settlement can be beneficial in the long run because his or her legal
counsel may reveal new perspectives on your situation that can increase
the worth of your claim. If you contact The Law Offices of Gerald L. Marcus
about a settlement check offered to you by the insurance company, we will
be able to offer you a free initial consultation on your case with no
obligation.

What is the difference between compensatory and punitive damages?

The key to the difference between compensatory and punitive damages lies
within the very titles of the two. Compensatory damages are intended solely to
compensate the plaintiff for any losses he or she incurred because of the accident.
Losses, also known as damages, primarily include the added financial costs
of the accident such as medical expenses, future medical treatment, wages
lost by the inability to work during recover and the loss of property.
However, the plaintiff may be awarded further compensatory damages for
physical and emotional reasons. While money cannot actually replace these
types of losses, plaintiffs may ask to be financially compensated for
the actual experience of pain and suffering, which includes emotional
pain from being injured and living with physical impairments.

How long do I have to decide whether to file or not?

The time limit on pursuing legal recourse for personal injury is legally
referred to as the statute of limitations. In California, the statute
of limitations on most personal injury claims is two years from the date
that the injury occurred. This means that a claim, however valid it may
be, will be rendered invalid if the plaintiff fails to file within the
two year limit. After that, the personal injury is considered immaterial
and no longer exists in the legal realm. This statute of limitations applies
to most personal injury claims including product liability, car accident
claims and workplace injury claims. If the personal injury includes professional
malpractice such as
medical malpractice, the statute of limitations is extended to three years from the date of
the injury. If the injury is not discovered immediately or if the date
of the injury cannot be identified, the plaintiff has one year to file
for medical malpractice from the discovery of the injury. If the medical
malpractice claim concerns the presence of a foreign object inside of
the patient's body, the statute of limitations is three years from
the date of discovery. Furthermore, for children made victims of medical
malpractice, a claim must be filed either three years from the date of
the injury or before the child's eighth birthday – whichever
time period is longer.

What is negligence?

In the general realm, negligence simply refers to carelessness by one or
more persons. The legal philosophy behind personal injury assumes a duty
of care for all people towards themselves and other people. It is the
duty of all members of society to exercise reasonable care and caution
in order to protect themselves and others from injury. Negligence is the
failure of that duty, usually resulting in injury to another person. The
legal principle of negligence is the key element in any personal injury
claim. Unless the plaintiff can prove that the defendant's negligence
was the direct cause of their injuries, the case is unlikely to be successful.
Negligence is a non-criminal wrong done by one person to another without
the intention of harm but with the absence of reasonable care and prudence.
Negligence is present in civil actions as opposed to criminal actions,
which usually involve recklessness or actual malice.

What will happen if the opposing party claims I contributed to the accident?

In the past, contribution of negligence on the part of the plaintiff would
completely disqualify them from the ability claim damages. This is known
as the system of contributory negligence, which does not award compensation
to plaintiffs who had even the slightest degree of fault in causing their
own injuries. However, California is among the states operating by a pure
comparative negligence system, where percentage of fault determines the
amount of damages paid by the defense. Under pure comparative negligence,
the judge or jury will assign percentages of fault to each party and then
assign damage award according to those percentages. This means that if
the plaintiff is found 75% at fault for their own injuries because of
their own negligence in avoiding the accident, he or she will be expected
to pay for 75% of the damages claimed in the suit and the defendant will
pay the remaining 25% of the damages.

Will my claim go to trial?

Not necessarily. In fact, most personal injury claims reach a settlement
before getting to the courtroom. Out of court settlements are favorable
for both parties because they avoid added court costs and lengthened trials.
Obviously, you do not want to compromise the amount of potential compensation
that a trial may bring you. However, the right personal injury attorney
can adequately negotiate a fair settlement without having to resort to
a courtroom trial.

How long after a settlement is reached will I receive the money?

In most cases, funds from a personal injury settlement are disbursed between
seven and 14 days after the release is signed. Cases that involve larger
settlements, the State as a party in the case or out-of-state insurance
companies can take longer.

What will I have to prove to win a personal injury claim?

There are three main elements in a successful personal injury claim. The
first thing you will have to prove in order to win your claim is that
there was a duty of care owed by the defendant to you. This would include
anything from being a fellow driver on the road expected to follow traffic
signs to being your physician responsible for providing reasonable medical
care. Secondly, you must show that the defendant breached that duty towards
you by failing to exercise the care that any reasonably prudent person
in the same situation would have. Lastly, you must be able to demonstrate
that you have real, tangible damages from the accident and that the breach
was the direct cause of those damages. These are called the elements of
negligence.

What is the difference between a claim and a lawsuit? Both claims and lawsuits are civil actions taken against negligent or
otherwise liable parties. In a lawsuit, a plaintiff will bring a claim
of loss against a defendant and demand action (usually financial compensation).
For example, a consumer might file a lawsuit against a drug manufacturer
because the pharmaceutical in question caused significant damage when
used. Claims, on the other hand, typically involve things like car accidents,
workers' compensation, pedestrian accidents and more.

How can your firm help me? At our law office, the personal injury legal team works persistently to
pursue compensation for individuals and the families of
wrongful death victims throughout Santa Clarita and the surrounding communities. We have
recovered millions of dollars in settlements for our clients in the past
and we will continue to put forth our greatest effort to help all future clients.

What are the benefits of hiring a personal injury lawyer? When retaining the services of an attorney, you will have the added advantage
of an advocate of your rights to help aggressively pursue compensation
on your behalf. Additionally, your legal representation will be capable
of finding important information regarding your case to help strengthen
your argument and potentially maximize your settlement.

Contact our Santa Clarita law firm today!

The Law Offices of Gerald L. Marcus understands that there are many more
questions that you might have regarding your accident. This is why our
firm provides free consultations for those interested in legal representation
or simply have inquiries. A Santa Clarita personal injury lawyer from
our firm can evaluate your case and determine what legal action you may
be able to take. To learn more, please
contact The Law Offices of Gerald L. Marcus today!

Serving Clients Since 1987

Getting Justice Starts Here

At The Law Offices of Gerald L. Marcus, the cases we handle most frequently
typically involve personal injury, car accidents, motor vehicle collisions,
and workers’ compensation matters. If you have been injured due
to someone else’s negligence or if you have questions about your
rights and options moving forward, speak with our award-winning legal
team today.